When we think of corsets, we think of tiny waists, surgically removed ribs, fainting, and shifted organs. However, corsets probably weren’t as bad as we think. Tight-lacing only became a thing in the nineteenth century, and even then, only a few women practiced it. It seems that it was rare for nineteenth-century women to train their waist to be smaller. Instead, they used optical illusions and photo-editing.

In fact, it’s assumed that the movement against corsets was started by men in the nineteenth century, perhaps because so much of the corset industry was dominated by skilled females, from business owners to seamstresses. It’s also important to mention that it was once common for men to wear corsets to flatten their beer bellies.